Do You Take This Rebel? Part 22

Ca.s.sie had had high hopes for the move into the new house. Surely then, when they were in the home they'd designed together, the last pieces of their relations.h.i.+p would fall into place. But it wasn't working out that way.

The new house was still not the home she had envisioned. It was bright and airy. Her kitchen was amazing. The fireplaces turned even the s.p.a.cious rooms into cozy refuges from the increasingly bitter weather of fall. They had already had one blizzard, and another was predicted before the end of the week. The snow was deep at the higher elevations, but here in Winding River it had melted rapidly, leaving mud and gloom in its wake. It was only the beginning of November, and already she was dreading being closed up indoors with a man who retreated into moody silences more nights than not.

But Cole, despite the fact that he was reluctantly sharing her bed, still kept a part of himself distant. They made love-sometimes sweet, tender love, sometimes wild, pa.s.sionate love-but there was little joy in it.

Still, Ca.s.sie couldn't deny herself the one form of communication that Cole allowed. Nor could she regret what had happened because of it. They were going to have a baby. She'd planned to tell him when he got back from his business trip, though she had no idea how he would take the news.

Once in a long while she caught a glimmer of the old Cole, the man who had shared everything with her, the man who had trusted her with his most private thoughts. Other times it was like living with a stranger. Which, she wondered, would surface when she made her announcement?

A lot depended on that, because slowly but surely their current circ.u.mstances were draining the life out of her. She had to do something to fix it, but she was out of ideas. It wasn't possible to force someone to forgive, much less forget. Time, the great healer, wasn't working. And a baby couldn't be expected to save a faltering marriage.

Cole's father was no help at all. He reserved most of his snide comments for the times when the two of them were alone. Ca.s.sie usually managed to let them roll off her back. Fighting with Frank Davis was a waste of energy, at least over something as inconsequential as a few pointed remarks.

His attempts to turn Jake against her were something else entirely. She wasn't sure when she'd first realized that was what he was doing, but lately he'd stepped up the campaign.

Today Frank dropped Jake off at the end of the drive after a riding lesson at the Double D. Jake came into the kitchen with a sullen expression, uttered no greeting at all and started to walk straight past her. The show of belligerence, more and more frequent after he'd been with his grandfather, was the final straw.

"Hey, what's with the long face?" Ca.s.sie asked.

His reply was mumbled. He kept right on walking.

"Jake Collins, get back here."

He faced her with a dark look. "I'm not a Collins. I'm a Davis. Someday I'm going to own Grandpa's ranch."

He said it as if he expected her to challenge the claim. "I imagine that's true, if it turns out to be what you want. As for whether you're a Collins or a Davis, you were born with my name. If you'd like to think about legally changing that to Davis, I'll speak to your father."

Having Cole legally acknowledge Jake as his son was something they should have discussed, she realized. In fact, she was somewhat surprised that Cole hadn't insisted on it. Obviously, his failure to do so was grating on his father's nerves. Frank had clearly started planting the seeds in Jake's head to get the ball rolling. Right or wrong, he was manipulating her son, just as he'd tried to do with Cole for years. She didn't like it.

Jake stared at her, clearly surprised by her offer. "You will?"

"Of course."

"Grandpa said you wouldn't. He said you were probably trying to keep me from being a Davis."

Ca.s.sie barely resisted the urge to tell Jake precisely what she thought of his grandfather. "That's not true," she said instead, keeping her tone mild. "To be honest, your father and I simply haven't talked about it, but we will. I promise."

Jake studied her intently for a long moment, his expression troubled. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Are you and Dad gonna get a divorce?"

Ca.s.sie was stunned by the question. "No. Why would you think that?"

"Grandpa said you probably would and then I would live with Dad."

"Oh, he did, did he?" Her temper shot into the stratosphere. If Frank had been around, she might very well have clobbered him over the head with a cast-iron skillet. "Sweetie, your dad and I are working very hard to make us a family. That takes time, but it's what I want. It's what we both want."

"Promise?"

She hugged him tightly. "I promise. Now go on upstairs and do your homework. I need to run out for a little while."

The minute Jake had grabbed a handful of cookies and a gla.s.s of milk, she s.n.a.t.c.hed her jacket off a hook by the kitchen door and went to the barn. She saddled up a horse, because it was much faster to get to the Double D by cutting across their adjoining fields than it was to drive clear out to the highway and around.

She had never been quite so furious. Even after learning of the role that Frank and her own mother had played all those years ago in keeping her and Cole apart, she had struggled to understand their perspective, but this was too much. This was an attempt to scare her son, to make it seem as if his family was about to fall apart and that the only person he could rely on was his grandfather.

Her breath turned to steam as she urged the horse into a gallop that ate up the distance to the Double D ranch house. All she could think about was shaking Frank until his teeth rattled. Not that she could do it, given their difference in sizes, but she was darn well willing to give it a try. At the very least, she intended to give him a tongue-las.h.i.+ng that he wouldn't soon forget.

Oblivious to the fact that there were still lingering patches of ice on the ground, that snow had started falling again, she rode harder, her temper climbing.

When the horse lost its footing, she wasn't prepared for the sudden skid, the frantic attempt by her mount to stay afoot. The next thing she knew she was flying through the air, trying desperately to curl her body to protect the baby as the ground rose up to meet her.

But she misjudged. When she slammed into the rocky ground, she broke the fall with her hand and felt the bone snap. The pain was excruciating. And for the first time in her life she fainted.

Cole hated himself for falling in love with Ca.s.sie all over again. How could he be so weak that a woman who'd betrayed him not once, but twice, could still manage to steal his heart? He wanted so badly to accept the love she was offering, to move on, but a part of him insisted on fighting her every step of the way.

It had to stop. They couldn't go on like this. It wasn't fair to either of them, nor to Jake.

Cole came home after a two-day business trip to California prepared to let her go so they could both find some peace. He walked into the house to find the kitchen empty with no sign of dinner on the stove. He heard music from upstairs and gathered Jake was in his room doing his homework, though how the kid could think with that sound blaring in his ears was beyond Cole.

He climbed the stairs two at a time, knocked on Jake's door, then opened it without waiting for a response. He doubted his son could hear him over the music, anyway.

Sure enough, Jake didn't even look up from his books. Cole crossed the room and switched off the CD player. Jake blinked and stared at him, his expression brightening.

"You're home. When did you get here?"

"A few minutes ago. Where's your mom?"

"Isn't she downstairs?"

"No."

The response seemed to make Jake vaguely uneasy.

"Jake, what's going on?"

"I'm not sure."

"Did you two fight?"

"Not exactly. I just asked her about some stuff Grandpa said. I think maybe it made her mad. Maybe she went to see him."

"What did Grandpa say?"

"That you guys were gonna get a divorce and I was gonna stay with you. She said he was wrong." Worry puckered his brow. "He was wrong, wasn't he?"

Cole bit back a curse. Given what he'd been thinking when he walked in the door, his father hadn't been that far off-though only about the divorce. Cole didn't intend to try to keep Jake. Now was not the time to get into that, though.

"When was that?" he asked instead.

Jake shrugged. "I don't know. What time is it now?"

"After seven. It's already dark out."

"I guess it was about four. I went by Grandpa's after school for a riding lesson, then he brought me home."

Three hours? Cole thought, his stomach churning. Why on earth wasn't she back by now? He grabbed Jake's phone and called his father.

"Is Ca.s.sie there?" he demanded when his father answered.

"Ca.s.sie? Why would she be here?"

"Jake thought she might be heading over there."

"Maybe she just wised up and left you."

Cole let that pa.s.s. The most important thing right now was finding Ca.s.sie.

"I'm going out to look for her," he told his father. "If you give a d.a.m.n about me or my son, you'll help."

"Well, of course I will," his father said defensively. "The snow's been coming down awhile now. No telling where she might be. Car could have run off the road."

But when Cole went outside, Ca.s.sie's car was parked behind the house where it always was. He checked the barn and saw that one of their horses was missing.

He looked up and realized Jake had followed him outside. He was s.h.i.+vering just inside the door of the barn.

"Is she gone?" Jake asked, looking as scared as Cole felt.

"She took one of the horses," he said. "I'm sure she's fine. She probably took shelter somewhere when the snow started."

"Why wouldn't she have turned around and come back?" Jake asked reasonably. "Or gone on to Grandpa's?"

He hunkered down in front of Jake. "I don't know, pal. I need you to do something for me, though. I want you to go inside and call nine-one-one. Tell the sheriff we need some help looking for your mom, okay? Can you do that?"

Jake nodded, his eyes wide.

"Then call your grandmother and ask her to come out here and stay with you."

"I want to come with you," Jake protested.

"No, this is more important. You can be the biggest help to your mom by calling the sheriff. Now scoot."

With one last backward glance, Jake took off for the house. Cole saddled their second horse and rode off in the direction of the Double D. If it had had to snow today, why couldn't it have been earlier so there would be clear hoofprints for him to follow? Instead he was forced to slow down and guess which way she might have gone.

The temperature had dropped dramatically just since he'd gotten home. If Ca.s.sie was out here, injured, she wouldn't be able to last long. The sense of urgency doubled, even as his progress slowed.

"Come on, Ca.s.sie. Where are you? Help me. Give me some sign."

The distant, distressed whinny of a horse finally drew his attention. His own mount's ears p.r.i.c.ked up.

"Is that Harley?" he murmured, and got a shake of a head and an answering whinny as a response. "Find him then. Let's find Harley."

The terrain had grown rockier and slicker. His frustration mounted right along with his anxiety. He had to find Ca.s.sie. He d.a.m.n well didn't intend to lose her like this.

With a sudden rush of understanding, he realized that he couldn't lose her at all. What did the decision of a scared eighteen-year-old girl matter? If the decision of a twenty-eight-year-old woman was less understandable, even he could see that it had been driven by a fear just as deep-seated as the one she'd felt years before. Who was he to judge that?

All that mattered, all that had ever mattered, was that he loved her and she loved him. Nothing had ever changed that. They'd just lost their way for a while.

Now he had to find her and tell her that.

A heart-wrenching whinny of an animal in pain cut through the air, closer now, just over the rise, if he wasn't mistaken. He crested the hill and spotted them, horse and woman, both down, both way too still.

"Don't die, Ca.s.sie," Cole pleaded as he leaped to the ground and knelt beside her. In its own show of concern his horse edged closer to its disabled stable mate. "Dear G.o.d, please don't let her die."

He checked her carefully for injuries. The only obvious one was her broken arm, but she'd been here a long time. Could it be there was a more serious problem? He debated the wisdom of moving her, but the chances of anyone else coming upon them here were slim and time was essential. She'd already been out in the bitter cold for way too long.

He bundled her in his jacket, then checked the injured horse. "I'll get someone in here for you in no time," he vowed, running his hand over the horse's trembling flank. "You saved her life, you know. You told me how to find her. I'll do everything in my power to save yours, too."

Then he gathered Ca.s.sie into his arms and mounted his own horse, heading for home as quickly as the weather permitted. She moaned softly while he rode. She was obviously in pain, but she was alive, and for the moment that was all that mattered. Once he got her to a hospital, he would will her back to life.

The next hour was the longest of his entire life as Ca.s.sie fought her way back to him. When her eyes finally blinked open, her gaze wandered around until it locked on his.

"I knew you'd find me," she whispered hoa.r.s.ely and then closed her eyes again.

The next time she awoke, Cole was asleep in the chair beside her bed. His eyes snapped open when he felt her fingers against his cheek. Her color was better, her eyes clear.

"How do you feel?"

"Alive," she said. "And grateful. Every time I tried to move, my arm hurt. I kept fainting."

He sighed when he met her gaze, then did what he'd vowed to do when he thought she might be lost to him forever.

"Good, because I have something to tell you, and I need to do it now, before I lose my courage. If you want your freedom, Ca.s.sie, I'll give it to you. Jake will stay with you."

She stared at him with an expression he couldn't read, so he plunged on.

"I didn't give you a choice about marrying me before, so I'm giving you one now. I love you. I want you to stay, but if you want to go, there will be no custody battle."

There was no mistaking the sheen of tears in her eyes then, and for an instant he was terrified that his gamble wasn't going to pay off, that she would go.

"You love me?" she said, and there was a note of wonder in her voice.

He shrugged. "Always have. I guess I always will. I just lost sight of that for a time." He studied her intently. "So, Ca.s.sie, will you go or stay? You can have some time to think about it."